2006 and 2009 PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool Champions Philippines B,  Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante (shooting), made their way into the last 16 of this year’s event with an 8-4 victory over plucky debutants Kuwait at the SM Mall North in Manila.
 
Nobody gave the Kuwait pair of Khaled Al Mutaira and Omar Al Shaheen any kind of hope but they did themselves proud, sticking with the Filipino pair in the early stages before succumbing down the home stretch. Both sides wore snappy outfits based on their national flags, but it was the home side that the packed crowd had come to see. As predicted the Philippines started well and took the first two racks fairly quickly.
 
As huge underdogs, the Kuwaiti duo of Al Mutaira and Al Shaheen were under no pressure at all, and that showed as they won the next two to silence the crowd. The Philippines won the next two to restore their lead but the game Kuwaiti pair took the next to leave it poised at 4-3. A long shot in the next from Bustamante set the Philippines on their way to taking the rack as the score stood at 5-3.
 
Reyes, who looked shaky in front of a home crowd in his World Pool Masters match earlier in the week, was anything but this time as he pulled out a few stunners from his never ending arsenal of shots. One such reversed bank shot, set up a run out to move the score to 6-3. A miss from Bustamante on the 5 ball in the next gave the Kuwaitis a chance and they took it to cut the lead. That would be the last meaningful effort from Team Kuwait and when they conceded the 9 ball in what was the last rack of the match to hand Philippines B an 8-4 win.
 
“It was good win and we can be pleased with that,” said Bustamante. “The Kuwait team came to play and gave us a good match but we’re delighted to make it into the next round and hopefully we can go on from there.”
 
The PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool takes place at the Block Atrium at the SM Mall North in Quezon City, Manila. It features 32 two-player teams representing 31 nations – hosts Philippines have two sides. The total prize-fund is $250,000 with $60,000 going to the winning pair.
 
Earlier, India enjoyed a thrilling win at the PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool as they almost threw away a glorious lead against Finland but came back at the death to clinch a memorable victory.
The scene was set when Team India strode into the arena, lead by a glamourous model scattering rose petals ahead of them. It was an audacious move, as the pairing of Raj Hundal and Amar Kang, with eye-catching national shirts, brought a touch of Bollywood to the SM Mall in Quezon City.
 
Their opponents were a blend of youth and experience as Mika Immonen, a finalist in this event in 2007, was accompanied by Petri Makkonen, a 23 year old making his World Cup debut. India moved ahead and at 5-1 up, the match looked to be as good as over. However, the nerves came in and the Finnish pair started to claw back the racks. India though, reached the hill at 7-3 and that’s when the drama started.
 
A ball-in-hand chance gave the Finns the next and then Kang missed the red 3 by some distance and the score soon became 7-5.
Makkonen played the four ball from a tough position, to give the Finns a chance in the 13th rack. He then enjoyed an outrageous piece of good fortune. Left with an angled table length shot on the 9 ball, the young Finn hit it hard and it stayed out. It hit the opposite rail and rolled ever so slowly up table, before falling into the pocket on its very last roll. That made it 7-6 to the Indians but that became 7-7 when the Finns nervously ran out the rack.

India had their chance in the final rack after a poor safety from Immonen and every shot was a tester. Kang played a good shot to draw back for the 7 and they completed the run out to move into the next round and record their first ever win in the World Cup of Pool. "I'm not sure that the wheels came off when we were leading but there's a lot of pressure out there. Petri missed a 9-ball by a country mile and fluked it but that's pool,” said Hundal.

Round 1 Results
India 8 – 7 Finland
Philippines B 8 – 4 Kuwait
Korea 8 – 5 Spain
Japan 8 – 3 Croatia
Switzerland 8 – 5 China
Sweden 8 – 7 Indonesia

The 2011 World Cup of Pool is sponsored by PartyPoker.net, the world’s leading online poker school. Cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis, Super Aramith balls by Saluc, tables by Star Xing Pai and the Official Cue is Predator.

GERMANY’S RALF SOUQUET claimed his sixth PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters title when he defeated the Philippines’ Dennis Orcollo in front of a packed house at the SM Mall North in Quezon City, Manila. The jubilant ‘Kaiser’ screamed with joy as he downed the final 9 ball, banishing a succession of heart-breaking defeats in the Philippines capital city.
 
Ralf lost to Ronnie Alcano in the final of the 2006 World Pool Championship in this same city and then he and Thorsten Hohmann were narrowly beaten in the final of the 2009 World Cup of Pool at the hands of Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante.
 
Souquet, 42, to be inducted into the BCA Hall of Fame this October, put in two stellar performances on the final day. First, he came from 7-4 down to beat Darren Appleton in the semi-final and followed that up by a solid performance to derail Dennis Orcollo who had looked so good over his previous three matches.
 
"It seems to be my tournament for whatever reason. I've made the final eight times and won six and lost twice. It's not only a dream come true but also the icing on the cake to win it here in the Philippines,” said a delighted Souquet. "It's the fifth final I've played in the Philippines but the first time I've won one, which makes it all the more satisfying!”

The match itself was tight is the early stages and at 3-3 it was all to play for. Neither player was making the most of the break before Orcollo nailed one in eighth game to set up a run out and establish a two rack lead at 5-3.
 
Souquet is one of pool’s premier fighters and he scrapped back into contention at 5-5 and then produced a superb break shot that saw four balls drop and leave him a shot on the lowest ball. From there he cleared to move into a 6-5 lead.
 
Sensing the momentum was swinging in his favour, Souquet broke and ran the next to reach the hill and put Orcollo under severe pressure. Ralf broke and ran the last rack for a famous victory.
 
"At the Masters you are playing 15 of the greatest players in the world and it's very tough from the first round on and you have to play at 100 per cent and if you can't do that then you won't win,” said.

"I could've lost all of my matches and the final was my biggest winning margin as I won 8-7, 8-6, 8-7 and then 8-5.

"The Philippines is the country of pool and it's where the sport is such a big thing. There are so many great players like Efren Reyes, Francisco Bustamante, Dennis Orcollo, Roberto Gomez and I could go on. It's just so tough to win a tournament here.

"But it's so great here as you have so many great fans that love the sport and the players are treated the way they should be."
 
The Final
Ralf Souquet (GER) 8 – 5 Dennis Orcollo (PHI)
Winner receives $20,000, runner-up receives $10,000
 
Semi Finals Results
Dennis Orcollo (PHI) 8 – 4 Fu Jianbo (CHN)
Ralf Souquet (GER) 8 – 7 Darren Appleton (ENG)
Losers receive $4,000
 
Quarter Finals Results
Ralf Souquet (GER) 8 – 6 Lee Van Corteza (PHI)
Darren Appleton (ENG) 8 – 4 Raj Hundal (IND)
Dennis Orcollo (PHI) 8 – 1 Chang Jung-lin (TPE)
Fu Jianbo (CHN) 8 – 5 Jason Klatt (CAN)
Losers receive $3,000
 
Round 1 Results
Ralf Souquet (GER) 8 – 7 Mika Immonen (FIN) ?Darren Appleton (ENG) 8 – 5 Efren Reyes (PHI)
Jason Klatt (CAN) 8 – 3 Francisco Bustamante (PHI)
Lee Van Corteza (PHI) 8 – 7 Huidji See (HOL)
Fu Jianbo (CHN) 8 – 4 Chris Melling (ENG)
Raj Hundal (IND) 8 – 3 Yukio Akagariyama (JAP)
Dennis Orcollo (PHI) 8 – 2 Tony Drago (MAL)
Chang Jung-lin (TPE) 8 – 3 Shane Van Boening (USA)
Losers receive $2,000
www.matchroompool.com

Dr. Louis Pannullo, Charlie Williams(Bronze), Mike Davis (Silver), Thorsten Hohmann (Gold), Alex Pagulayan (Bronze) & patron sponsor Dr. Michael Fedak during the closing ceremonies

Germany once again reigns supreme in straight pool as Thorsten Hohmann dominated the 71st World Tournament of 14.1.  USA's Mike Davis had no answer for Hohmann's precision game and knowledge of 14.1. Both players played their very first match of the event against each other, and met once again in the very end.
 
The matches went longer than expected, and lasted to 3:00 am (ouch) before finished. But a large number of die hard fans stayed till the very end including for the closing ceremonies.
 
"I really say thanks to the fans who stayed here to watch me play to the very end," said Hohmann in his appreciation for the fans.
 
USA's Mike Davis made a valiant effort. The 9-ball player who picked up the game just a few years ago made it through the round robin with 5 wins and 2 losses. Then he defeated Shaun Wilkie 200-133, Earl Herring 200-79, demolished legendary Mike Sigel 200-79, weathered a tough 200-166 match with Charlie Williams before facing Hohmann.
 
Thorsten went undefeated in the round robin stages with a perfect 7-0 record and then defeated Dan Mastermaker 200-25, Dennis Hatch 200- 83, Steve Lipsky 200-116, and came back from a huge deficit to win a thrilling match with Filipino Alex Pagulayan 200-172.
 
In the finals, Thorsten took a commanding lead right away which included a 100+ ball run. Mike was never able to recover from this hit. Fatigue also was a factor on both players as they had already endured tough semi-final matches. They had both pocketed 1500 balls each over the 5 days.  Towards the end Hohmann needed less than one rack to win the match but missed 2 times unbelievably to close it out. Davis was in no shape to put any significant numbers up anymore, and Hohmann pocketed the final balls to claim the championship once more. Hohmann won in 2006.

"This is definitely one of the most significant accomplishments for me," said Davis. "I've won a couple big 9-ball events, but this is major for me to make it to the finals of the World Tournament."
 
"I felt very good coming into the finals. I ran a hundred balls in each of my single elimination matches (5 in a row). But Mike made a very good effort, so he should be proud of himself. This title means alot to me," said Hohmann. With many 9-ball, 10-Ball, and 8-ball titles to his credit, he was asked was 14.1 his favorite game. His reply, "Oh yeahhhh!"
 
Checkout www.worldstraightpool.com for full group results and other 14.1 news from the event.

The 2011 World Tournament is proudly co-sponsored by Predator Cues, Olhausen Tables, Amsterdam Billiards, Andy Cloth, Aramith Balls, Kamui, Pool & Billiard Magazine, Sandcastle Billiards and straight pool aficionados Bill Austin of UT, Dr.Louis Pannullo, Ralph Rubin of MD.  Co-contributors Dennis Walsh, Dr.James Heller, Charles Eames, Mark Snodgrass, and Bill Marapolous.

P&B instruction columnist and Dragon Promotions owner Charlie Williams narrowly escaped defeat at the hands of Johnny Archer. 200-187. The USA will make the finals of the World Tournament of 14.1 for the first time as Mike Davis and Charlie Williams battle it out for the chance to make history. Or change it, depending on how one views the dominance by the Europeans in modern times.
 
Williams took an early 60 point lead, but Archer fought back to regain the lead. Then Williams returned the favor and too the lead again 130-91. Archer again came back. The lead see-sawed several times in the course of the match. Finally Archer stood on the threshold of victory needing only 11 balls. He had a great break shot set up, but he missed the ball and Williams came to the table needing 2 racks to win.  Relying on his famous shotmaking, Williams' controversial patterns made for some exciting shots. At the end, Williams shot a off an angle side pocket combo to close out the match. "Willie Mosconi is turning in his grave. I know. I'm sorry!" joked Williams.
 
"The shot clock was little fast and I think modifying it to an extension per rack is a good way to go. But definitely you need a clock sometimes because some players are really, really slow," said John Schmidt.
 
Currently the favorite to win from here is Thorsten Hohmann of Germany. He faces 14.1 rookie but strong all-around pro Alex Pagulayan. The winner will wait for outcome of Davis and Williams.
 
Checkout www.worldstraightpool.com for full group results and other 14.1 news from the event. The 2011 World Tournament of 14.1 is proudly co-sponsored by Predator Cues, Olhausen Tables, Amsterdam Billiards, Andy Cloth, Aramith Balls, Kamui, Pool & Billiard Magazine, Sandcastle Billiards and straight pool aficionados Bill Austin of UT, Dr.Louis Pannullo, Ralph Rubin of MD.  Co-contributors Dennis Walsh, Dr.James Heller, Charles Eames, Mark Snodgrass, and Bill Marapolous.

Rodney Morris is getting the hang of straight pool. Photo by Charles Eames

Could Rodney Morris be the greatest Hawaiian 14.1 player in history? Pool historians may need to start researching that since Morris is making a statement at The World Tournament of 14.1. Morris is one of only four players to go undefeated in seven straight matches in the round robin and win their groups. The event's first stage is now concluded and goes into the single elimination race to 200 with half the field eliminated.
 
Morris had notable wins over New York 14.1 local legend Danny Barouty and played a near flawless match on the TV table against Brandon Shuff. He defeated Shuff 100-19 in 2 innings.
 
"I'm starting to like this game," said Morris. " I just kept telling myself throughout my matches that if Charlie Williams could do it, it must be easy!"
 
Two players tomorrow who didn't have a perfect record are USA hopeful John Schmidt and Finland's Mika Immonen. Just days ago Immonen picked Schmidt as America's best chance to win the World Tournament. Now only one of these two 14.1 giants will make it past the match.
 
Other notable matches include defending 14.1 champion Oliver Ortmann versus Japan national champion Kunihiko Takahashi and the 12:00 pm live stream match between Ray Martin vs Max Eberle. Check out www.worldstraightpool.com for full group results and other 14.1 news from the event

The 2011 World Tournament is proudly co-sponsored by Predator Cues, Olhausen Tables, Amsterdam Billiards, Andy Cloth, Aramith Balls, Kamui, Pool & Billiard Magazine, Sandcastle Billiards and straight pool aficionados Bill Austin of UT, Dr.Louis Pannullo, Ralph Rubin of MD.  Co-contributors Dennis Walsh, Dr.James Heller, Charles Eames, Mark Snodgrass, and Bill Marapolous.  

Executive Billiards, manufacturer of the Delta-13 billiard ball rack, announced today that they are hosting a pool trick shots contest for novice and amateur players on YouTube.
“The Delta-13 International Amateur Trick Shot Contest” will give away over $20,000 in quality billiard accessories, including a 7' Diamond Sport pool table. Four winners will also receive airfare plus three nights stay in Las Vegas from May 11-12, 2012.

Pool Tricks Add Excitement to Home Recreation
“We are promoting artistic pool and trick shots during the four month contest to expose the home recreation market to this exciting sport. Young and old alike, who have access to a pool table, will find trick shots are a terrific activity to entertain family and friends,” says Terry Taggart, President of Executive Billiards.

The process for competing in the contest requires 4 easy steps:
1. Read the complete contest rules at www.delta-13.com.
2. Record a video of your trick shot.
3. Upload the video to YouTube.
4. Register your video on the delta-13 web site.

Trick videos will be judged and graded with a maximum point potential of 10 for each of five categories; Degree of difficulty, creativity and originality, execution, presentation, and video quality. World renowned professional trick shot artists will perform the judging. Florian “Venom” Kohler – France, Stefano “ Mr. Trick Shots” Pelinga – Italy, Paul “Professor-Q-Ball” Frankel – USA, and Tom “Dr. Cue” Rossman – USA, will be using their many talents to grade the registered videos.

According to ESPN & World Masters Trick Shot Champion Tom “Dr. Cue” Rossman, “The Delta-13 International Amateur Trick Shot Contest should become a landmark competition for the sport of artistic pool. Players from around the world may showcase their artistic skills in 2 presentation categories, which will surely take trick shots to a new level in billiard excellence and magnetic fan appeal.”

All qualifying trick shot videos must include a Delta-13 regular or elite ball rack. The entire “Rules of Eligibility” can be found at www.delta-13.com. Winners will be announced on February 13, 2012.

Gold Sponsors who made this contest possible include :
Simonis Cloth, Aramith Balls, www.playbca.com, Poison Billiards, Diamond Billiards, Dr. Cue Promotions, Kamui Tips, Poolprodigystore.com, www.generationpool.com, and Tag Team Design.

Ray Martin had fans on their feet when he upset reigning World Champion Oliver Ortmann of Germany Today. Photo by Charles Eames

Hollywood could not have scripted this any better. Ray "Cool Cat" Martin, the 76-year-old BCA Hall of Famer and author of "99 Critical Shots" gave former world champ Oliver Ortmann his very first loss at the 71st World Tournament of 14.1. 

Ortmann had the lead at one point, but Martin kept the score close throughout the match. Both players engaged in several key safety exchanges, which seemed to throw the German champion off his rhythm. Martin won the bulk of these defensive exchanges using his fountain of old school knowledge.

Needing only a rack, Martin had a very difficult cut shot that would break the stack open. He made a terrific cut but the cue ball got kissed into the corner as well. Ortmann could not end the set however, and Martin was given another chance. Needing less than a rack, he faced another deep cut shot as his break shot, and made an incredible backwards cut into the side pocket and busted the rack open, but again the cue ball somehow found a pocket. Ortmann erred once more and Martin ran out what he needed for the win. The audience rose to their feet in joy!

"It feels really good. I can't play like I use to, but I'm happy I can still do it," said Martin of his historic win.

Ortmann continued to have a bad day as he ran into a red hot Sigel next. Sigel, talkative as always, managed to put together rack after rack. After many self oohs and ahhs, Sigel finished the match with a 100 ball run to shut Ortmann down 100-0. This is the first time anyone has shut down Ortmann in the World Tournament. Sigel remains undefeated and looks to be prime for the top ranking for his group.

Checkout www.worldstraightpool.com for full group results and other 14.1 news from the event

The 2011 World Tournament is proudly co-sponsored by Predator Cues, Olhausen Tables, Amsterdam Billiards, Andy Cloth, Aramith Balls, Kamui, Pool & Billiard Magazine, Sandcastle Billiards and straight pool aficionados Bill Austin of UT, Dr.Louis Pannullo, Ralph Rubin of MD.  Co-contributors Dennis Walsh, Dr.James Heller, Charles Eames, Mark Snodgrass, and Bill Marapolous.  For more information on player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978.

New Brunswick, New Jersey-  Dragon Promotions is making preparations for Hurricane Irene and possible issues caused by the impending storms. Players and fans are not to worry though, the event will go on this week. The 14.1 Warm-Up Tournament originally scheduled for Amsterdam Billiard Club will be moved to Sunday August 28 with players meeting at 2pm. The main event, 71st World Tournament, will begin with a players meeting at 9am on Monday morning August 29th.  The event will stay on schedule to end on September 2.
 
Fans will still be able to watch world class straight pool action Sunday with stars such as Thorsten Hohmann, Mike Sigel, John Schmidt, Jose Parica, Johnny Archer, Alex Pagulayan, Stephan Cohen, Rodney Morris, Kunihiko Takahashi, Ralf Eckert, Mike Davis, Max Eberle, Charlie Williams,  and many more competing.
 
Everyone is welcome to come Sunday and mix it up with top 14.1 stars like Niels Feijen!
 
All fans and players of any skill level can join in the Warm-Up for $75 and get a rare opportunity to play in the main arena of The World Tournament. The Olhausen Tables with Andy Cloth and Aramith Balls will be new so come out and experience the feeling of world class 14.1 action with the pros at The Hyatt Regency!
 
Both tournaments are sponsored by Dr. Michael Fedak and Amsterdam Billiard Club. Predator Is the Official Cue of the events.
 
"It's really unfortunate timing for this storm to hit on our big day with the pros, but stuff happens. We apologize to the fans and players but are happy to still support both events in New Jersey," explained Greg Hunt of Amsterdam Billiards. New York City and much of New Jersey Has mandatory evacuation and major roads are being closed down, along with all mass transit. Despite this, Greg Hunt, of Amsterdam Billiards and from Dr. Michael Fedak will add $3000 into the  Warm-Up one day event.
The bottom line: The best straight pool action will still be ongoing all week and everyday!
 Sandcastle Billiards will be inviting all the pros and fans over for a night of fun Saturday August 27th. Located only 5 minutes away from the Hyatt Regency, for a mere $20 gets you in to play pool free all night. Starting Sunday through Friday just bring your Official Program Book of the World Tournament of 14.1 and you will get the same special all week!

Three time World 14.1 Champion Ray "Cool Cat" Martin and 14.1 Continuous inventor Jerome Keogh (left) will be the very first inductees into the Straight Pool Hall of Fame. The ceremony will take place August 31, 2011 at 5 p.m. at a dinner banquet at the Hyatt Regency Hotel during the 71st World Tournament of 14.1. Keogh will be inducted posthumously while Martin will be there live to accept his award and speak. Even better, Martin will participate in the World Tournament as a competitor at age 76.

"Its a great honor to be inducted. It’s nice that people still alive will be inducted as well in the future. That's really the way it should be. Get them in before they die! Let them enjoy it!" said Martin (right). Ray won the World Tournament in 1971, 1974, and 1978. Martin also won numerous 9-Ball titles, is a BCA Hall of Fame inductee and the author of the famed 99 Critical Shots instructional pool book.

"There were many factors on why we decided to start this inaugural Straight Pool Hall of Fame. We wanted to honor not only obvious choices, but to remember great players that are still alive and remind them that they are not forgotten,” said Charlie Williams, Founder of Dragon Promotions. “They are living treasures of the sport. Also, we wanted to recognize those who may not receive recognition elsewhere, but were huge parts of 14.1 history."

Jerome Keogh invented 14.1 in 1910. Previous to that, players would break the balls open but sometimes nothing went in, which many felt was too big a luck factor. Keogh decided the game should be played with the final ball remaining out. Thus 14 balls plus 1, which became known as 14.1. The very first World 14.1 Tournament was held in 1911 and won by Alfredo DeOro. Keogh had prior to that won multiple World Championships, but despite inventing the game that changed the sport, he would never win the World 14.1 title. Today, a hundred years later, the Straight Pool Hall of Fame honors him fittingly as the founder of the game.

"Over the last six years, the fans, players, and sponsors have really made us feel like the caretakers of straight pool. I'm not a pool player, but I've learned to really come to enjoy and respect this elegant game. We want to continue keeping this game alive and make it prosper. Honoring the people who did it before us is a big part of that," explains Cindy Lee, CEO of Dragon Promotions.

Guest speakers at the dinner banquet on August 31 will include former World Champions and veteran peers of Ray's; Allen Hopkins, Mike Sigel, and Earl Herring. The 14.1 Hall of Fame events will also include video presentations by NYCGrind.com's Jerry Tarantola and funded by Dr. Louis Pannullo. Charlie Williams will MC the evening's festivities.

The 2011 World Tournament is proudly co-sponsored by Olhausen Tables, Amsterdam Billiards, Inside Pool Magazine, Andy Cloth, Aramith Balls, Kamui, Pool & Billiard Magazine, Sandcastle Billiards and straight pool aficionados Bill Austin of UT, Dr.Louis Pannullo of NY, Ralph Rubin of MD. Co-contributors include Dennis Walsh, Dr.James Heller, Charles Eames, Mark Snodgrass, and Bill Marapolous. For more information on player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978.

At right, Ralf Souquet

Broomfield, CO, Aug. 12, 2011 — Versatility and longevity are the common threads that bind 2011 Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame inductees Ralf Souquet and Danny DiLiberto, who earned election into pool’s hallowed halls in voting conducted by the United States Billiard Media Association. Souquet, 42, and DiLiberto, 76, will be formally inducted into Greatest Player wing of the BCA Hall of Fame on Oct. 20 during ceremonies at the Chesapeake Marriott in Chesapeake, VA.

Souquet, born in Eschweiler, Germany, has been a dominant player in Europe for more than 25 years, having won more than 40 German titles and 34 European Championship medals. But his record is nearly as impressive in top U.S. and international events. “The Kaiser,” as Souquet is known, boasts world titles in both 9-ball (1996) and 8-ball (2004), a gold medal in 9-ball at the 2009 World Games, and is a four-time winner of the World Pool Masters. On American soil, Souquet owns a BCA U.S. Open 14.1 Championship crown (2000), a U.S. Open 9-Ball title (2002), a pair of BCA Open 9-Ball Championship titles, and has won the Derby City 9-ball crown three times.

“This is great news!” said Souquet, who had finished second in Hall of Fame voting to Francisco Bustamante in 2010. “It’s a great honor. When you talk about the greatest players, like Archer and Strickland and Varner, they’re all in the Hall of Fame. Being mentioned in the same list with those names is a great achievement.”

Souquet becomes the seventh foreign-born player inducted into the BCA Hall of Fame. “I’m also proud to be the first European male player in the Hall of Fame,” Souquet added. “I think it’s probably harder for a foreign player to be voted in, but it’s nice that the American pool community believes that my overall game and approach to the sport has been positive. I must have done something right.”

Born in Buffalo, N.Y., Danny DiLiberto chose billiards ahead of boxing, bowling and baseball, all sports at which the multi-talented athlete excelled. In fact, DiLiberto boxed professionally and was undefeated as a professional fighter. Under the tutelage of famed trainer Angelo Dundee, and boxing under the name Danny Toriani, DiLiberto posted a 14-0-2 record, with 12 knockouts in the late ’50s, until his oft-injured hands forced him to retire from the ring.

Boxing’s loss was billiards’ gain, as the colorful DiLiberto spent nearly 30 years near the top of the game. DiLiberto won numerous national-class tournaments in the ’60s, but was at his peak in the 1970s when 14.1 was the game of champions in the pool world. After falling in the title match of the prestigious BCA U.S. Open 14.1 championship in both 1968 (to Joe Balsis) and 1972 (to Steve Mizerak), DiLiberto won the straight pool division at the 1972 Johnston City World All-Around Championships. DiLiberto then went on to defeat 9-ball division champ Billy Incardona and one-pocket division winner Larry “Boston Shorty” Johnson in a three-man playoff to earn the Johnston City All-Around crown.
DiLiberto’s versatility at the table shown through in the ’80s when he defeated Nick Varner in the title match to win the 1981 BCA National 8-Ball Championship, then won the ’83 World One-Pocket title and the 1984 Classic Cup 9-Ball crown, giving him a major national title in the four major pool disciplines.

“I’m really choked up,” DiLiberto said after being informed of the honor. “I really thought the Hall of Fame would wait until I was dead to vote for me. It’s truly an honor. This makes my day, my month, my year!”

Voting was conducted by the USBMA Hall of Fame Board, which consists of USBMA members, elected At-Large members and living members of the BCA Hall of Fame. Induction in the Greatest Players category is awarded to the player named on the most ballots. A second player is elected if both players are named on more than 70 percent of the ballots. Souquet was named on 65 percent of the ballots. Karen Corr received votes on 56 percent of the ballots. No other eligible player was named on more than 25 percent of the ballots.

To be eligible for consideration in the Greatest Player category, a player a) must be 40 years old by Jan. 1 of the year of their induction; b) must have a professional playing career of at least 10 years; and c) must have recorded significant achievements in U.S.-based events.

DiLiberto is the first player elected to the Greatest Player wing of the BCA Hall of Fame through recommendation of the Veterans Committee. The Veterans Committee, a committee elected by the USBMA, reviews the resumes of mid-20th century players unlikely to win election against contemporary stars, and players who failed to be elected through the general Greatest Players elections prior to turning 60 years of age. A player recommended by the Veterans Committee to the Hall of Fame Board must receive a simple majority of “Yes” votes from the board for election.